Get 8-year-old tube TV fixed or buy a new HD set?

I’ve got an eight-year-old 32" Toshiba–a tube TV, not a flat-screen. Recently the picture has become intermittently jittery and twitchy. Some of the jitters are tiny, but then at other times it’s more like a small earthquake. It can last for 10-20 minutes, but then go away for two or three hours before returning. It happens on every input, so it’s not a loose cable. Hitting the side of the TV isn’t very effective in stopping it, though it does seem to be a reliable way to induce the jittering when it’s not happening already (useful I suppose if/when I need to show the problem to a repair guy).

Don’t know whether I should get it looked at and fixed (or how much that’s likely to cost) or whether I should just take this opportunity to hop on the HD bandwagon. It’s our primary TV, so it’s not something we want to just live with. But at the same time, considering it works just fine for hours between fits of jittering, it seems nowhere near "broken" enough to just scrap it.

Most likely you have LOOSE solder connections on the VERTICAL output circuit….it always looks like an earthquake…

You’d be looking at around $100 most likely to get it fixed….

And if you have the TV man come to your home, add about $50 for the trip charge….the GOOD news is you don’t have to KILL yourself lifting the TV set and putting it in your car….

And your back is more valuable than $50, isn’t it?

Save your money…prices drop, technology increases….the longer you can wait the more BANG for the Buck you get…..

A TV like your’s can get 12 to 15 years out of it….

Elliott O
on
May 5, 2010
at
7:01 am

If the jitters change (better or worse) when you hit the TV, it is a poor connection, but since you eliminated individual external connections, it has to be an internal connection, either a poor solder joint or a connector that’s loose or corroding. Have a technician look into it and check for (and clean) any loose connectors. if that doesn’t clear it up, then they look for cracked or other poor solder connections, or even cracked circuit traces.

If you can eliminate the jittery picture this way, you can get along for now by getting a digital converter box (check https://www.dtv2009.gov/ to get a $40 coupon, up to 2 per household, but be aware that they expire 90 days from issuance) to receive the new digital signals required by next February.

Allen H
on
May 5, 2010
at
7:01 am

It would be reccomended that you upgrade to a brand new HD set. Prices have fallen considerably from the past few years, and they won’t be falling much more in the coming years. You can get a nice 42 inch LCD flat-panel HDTV for under $1000.

Getting an old tube TV fixed is going to be complicated and complex. Consider these questions: Who will be fixing it? How will they be fixing it? Where can you find such people/technicians? How much will it cost? How long will it take?
However, despite whatever I said, it certainly may be possible that you aren’t ready for HD just yet. In that case, you may want to ask yourself these questions: Do I need much better quality? Do I want to spend more money? Am I going to be upgrading my sattelite programming to HD? Am I going to puchase an HD-DVD player or a Blu-Ray disk player? Remember that in order to view HD, you must have an HD source.

It also may be possible that your TV needs a simple tech geek in the family that needs to check it. Maybe the settings are a bit messed up, or maybe something else is wrong.

In my opinion, you should definitely get out and buy an HD set right now. You have had a TV for 8 years, how much longer do you need it for? You should go and buy something nce, sleek, and new. It’ll mix in with your style. It’ll make your room look better. Tube TV’s are out of style, and most families have upgraded to HDTV.

This also depends on your budget. Are you in a position to buy a new TV? Can you afford it? Maybe you can, maybe you can’t.

All in all, it’s your personal choice. However, it is reccomended from me that you go out and buy an HDTV because it is the latest, greatest, and is the future of television.

Paul in San Diego
on
May 5, 2010
at
7:01 am

The problem with getting it fixed is that it’s at about the age when things start to go bad on TVs. So, fixing this problem does not prevent other problems from happening the day after you get it back from the shop.

I recommend that you go with a new TV (LCD HD, Sony Bravia if you can afford it). A good 32-inch 720 resolution HDTV will run you several hundred dollars. A good 42-inch will run you from about $800 (Insignia 720 resolution) to about $1400 (Sony Bravia with 1080i upconversion).

Then get the HD package from your service provider. You’ll be shocked and amazed at how much better HDTV is than standard definition TV.

Evelyn H
on
May 5, 2010
at
7:01 am

I think you should try to invest into getting a LCD TV. You might be able to fix this problem but look at it this way.
Since this TV is up in age you probably have another problem
with this TV and all the money you pay to fix it could go
on a newer model television…Good luck!